"Why did he suddenly disappear?"
Aiko sensei said in a fit of pique.
"Aiko sensei, you don't need to be too discouraged; we don't know anything yet."
"His room wasn't in disarray, so it's highly likely he left on his own. Please don't blame yourself too much."
"That's right, Aiko, it's precisely at times like these that we should calm down. Besides, Yukitoshi is an excellent sorcerer; he won't get into an accident so easily."
Kouki and the students offered comfort one after another.
Shimizu Yukitoshi's Heavenly Job was "Dark Sorcerer," a Heavenly Job with special talent for dark magic, and his own strength was not to be underestimated.
Hearing words of concern for herself, Aiko couldn't help but fall into self-blame. She had joined the adventure party to protect the students, but now she was the one causing them worry.
This teacher was too derelict!
She took a deep breath and said, "Everyone, I'm sorry for making you worry."
"That's right, worrying alone won't solve the problem. Shimizu is an excellent mage; he'll definitely be fine!"
"Anyway, let's all go eat first!"
To avoid affecting everyone's schedule, Aiko sensei pushed the students out of the room.
At the same time, in front of Hiyama's room.
"Lily, you can do it!"
The inn girl named Lily cheered herself on, then lightly knocked on the door.
When the door opened, she couldn't help but let out a surprised "Eek!"
Because Hiyama, who opened the door, was shirtless, revealing his merman line and eight-pack abs.
Lily covered her eyes with her hands, but a large gap remained between her fingers.
"What's wrong?" Hiyama leaned against the door and asked.
"Hi... Hiyama-san, Della from the Adventure Guild is looking for you. I told her to wait at the inn entrance." Lily said, secretly peeking into the room with her little head.
The sight inside the room immediately made Lily's face flush all the way to her neck.
"Oh, I see."
Hiyama pushed Lily's little head back, calmly indicating he understood.
Then he closed the door.
"Will... will I experience this one day too?" Lily murmured.
Speaking of which, Hiyama-san's hand was so warm!
If only he could....
Lily's heart was filled with all sorts of strange thoughts as she went downstairs, her face red.
"What does the Adventure Guild want with me?"
It's probably related to yesterday's monster trade.
Hiyama thought about these things, and after getting dressed, he said, "2B, I'm leaving the two of them to you. I'm going out for a bit."
"Yes, Master."
2B said expressionlessly.
Hiyama glanced at them, reflecting if he had overdone it yesterday, then took out a thin blanket to cover the alluring scene.
When Hiyama went downstairs, it was exactly when the students were collectively going to Aiko sensei's room to report Shimizu Yukitoshi's disappearance.
So he didn't meet anyone.
Arriving at the inn entrance, Hiyama saw the counter lady who had helped him with the procedures at the Adventure Guild yesterday.
"Excuse me, I forgot to introduce myself yesterday. My name is Della."
She extended her slender, jade-like hand.
"No need for greetings. What brings you here today?"
Hiyama said coldly.
"Uh... alright."
Della hadn't expected his attitude to be so cold. She had gone to the trouble of wearing her prettiest clothes today.
"I'm here to inform you that our Guild Master wishes to see you."
"Guild Master?"
Hiyama raised an eyebrow.
He vaguely remembered that although this was just a small town, the Guild Master of the Adventure Guild seemed to be quite a formidable character.
He then thought about what he had done in the Guild yesterday. Could he have been discovered?
"The situation is complicated. In any case, the Guild Master instructed me to absolutely bring you to the Guild." Della said with a pleading look on her face.
"Alright, I'll go with you."
Hiyama agreed.
He had no reason to refuse.
If the Adventure Guild were to use yesterday's incident to threaten him, he could just kill them and run away.
P.S.: To reiterate, the author updates four times a day, occasionally more, but the update times are in the afternoon and evening.*
Chapter 52: Share Magic!
Hiyama followed Della to the Guild's reception room. As soon as he pushed open the door, a hearty voice rang out.
"You must be Hiyama Daisuke. You're indeed a fine young man!"
"I'm Brook, the Guild Master. Just call me Catherine!"
A plump woman was sitting in the reception room. Upon seeing him, her eyes lit up, and she said with a smile.
Hiyama couldn't help but feel a chill.
If he remembered correctly, this woman was actually the former Secretary-General of the Adventure Guild Headquarters in the Royal Capital, and also an instructor at the Adventure Guild Headquarters.
Currently, two-thirds of the branch masters in various towns were once her students, and she had a wide network.
But now, she was just an Adventure Guild branch master living in seclusion in a small town.
"What is it?"
Hiyama sat down on the reception room sofa indifferently and asked calmly.
Although this woman had a deep background, to Hiyama, she was merely an existence he could crush with one hand. He had nothing to care about.
"Hiyama-san!"
Della's expression changed at the side.
"Heh heh, it's rare to see such a confident newcomer these days." Catherine looked very appreciative of him and nodded.
"Ahem, since that's the case, let's get straight to the point."
Catherine put on a serious face and said, "I hope you can take on a request."
"A request?"
Hiyama was somewhat surprised. Did her Guild Master specifically call him, a blue-ranked adventurer, just to have him take on a request?
"Why not call a higher-ranked adventurer, but me, a blue-ranked one?" Hiyama frowned.
"Because I know that someone who can obtain so many monster materials from the depths of the Orcus Great Labyrinth definitely has strength beyond blue-rank."
Catherine laughed.
As a former instructor at the Adventure Guild Headquarters, she had considerable confidence in her judgment.
"If that's the case, I refuse."
Hiyama stood up, preparing to leave.
He was busy trying to conquer the Lycian Great Labyrinth; he had no time for requests.
Moreover, his adventurer status was only for the purpose of selling monster materials more easily.
"Eh... wait!"
Catherine hadn't expected Hiyama to turn and walk out without even asking about the request's content. She quickly tried to stop him.
"What? Does the Adventure Guild have a habit of forcing people to take on quests?"
Hiyama said coldly.
A terrifying pressure began to emanate from him. Catherine couldn't help but tremble, and she sat back down on the sofa.
Della, at the side, turned pale, her legs giving way, and she sat on the floor.
"You... don't be so quick to refuse." Catherine said with cold sweat beading on her forehead, speaking with difficulty.
The strength Hiyama displayed at this moment made Catherine even more convinced of her idea.
"This request will be beneficial to you."
"What benefit?"
Hiyama withdrew his pressure and asked with interest.
"Whew...."
Catherine exhaled, smiling wryly, "I initially guessed you were hiding your strength, but I never imagined you were hiding so much."
"This sense of pressure, I'm afraid it can already rival a 'Gold' ranked adventurer."
Hiyama remained silent.
This former Adventure Guild Headquarters instructor probably didn't know that Hiyama could easily crush those Gold-ranked adventurers she spoke of with one hand.
"As long as you can help me complete this request, I promise to help you raise your adventurer rank to 'Silver'!"
Catherine took a deep breath and said.
Even with her status, it was very difficult to recommend a blue-ranked adventurer directly to silver-rank, but if she didn't offer something, she probably wouldn't be able to move Hiyama.
Hiyama felt disdain in his heart and was about to refuse when he heard a "ding."
[Please choose]
"1. Accept Catherine's request and obtain a divine magic—Share Magic (from modern times**. Since there are shared bicycles, why can't there be shared magic?)."
"2. Refuse Catherine's request and obtain one donut (Shinobu special edition)."
"Share Magic: Can designate one person to share one of the host's magic. This person will gain the right to use one of the host's magic! During this period, the host's own use of the magic is not affected."
"Please note, one person can only be bound to share one magic. Once unbound, it cannot be bound again."
Share Magic?
Looking at the description, this magic wasn't useful for increasing his own strength, but it could greatly enhance the combat power of those around Hiyama!
It could be said to be a very practical magic!
Thinking of this, Hiyama decisively said,
"I choose one."
Hiyama sat down again, looking as if he had been swayed by Catherine's reward, and said calmly,
"Alright, I'll listen to what you have to say."
Guild Master Catherine couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and even Della at the side showed a smile.
"Since you've agreed, I'll explain the content of this request." Guild Master Catherine took a sip of tea.
"Recently, the Guild has received several sighting reports, all indicating that a large number of monsters have been seen active in the mountain range north of the town."
"We initially thought they were monsters from near the Haltina Sea of Trees, but later we discovered that things were far from that simple."